Guest: Open Lines with Dr. David Livingston. Topics: Space Show surveys & feedback, SatCon 2012, post election space policy & more. Please direct all comments and questions regarding Space Show programs/guest(s) to the Space Show blog, https://thespaceshow.wordpress.com. Comments and questions should be relevant to the specific Space Show program. Written Transcripts of Space Show programs are a violation of our copyright and are not permitted without prior written consent, even if for your own use. We do not permit the commercial use of Space Show programs or any part thereof, nor do we permit editing, YouTube clips, or clips placed on other private channels & websites. Space Show programs can be quoted, but the quote must be cited or referenced using the proper citation format. Contact The Space Show for further information. Welcome to our nearly 2.5 hour Open Lines discussion on a wide range of topics. Most of our topics covered the entire show so this summary is in just one segment. In addition to a few talking points at the beginning of the show, I stressed the need for more Space Show listener feedback and the use of possible surveys. The survey issue came up with several callers and many ideas for surveys were put forth. If you have ideas or suggestions for better Space Show feedback including the use of surveys, please post your ideas on The Space Show blog. In addition, we had some strange phone line issues throughout this program. We are working to track down what happened but since there is no call waiting at our end, I’m not sure the problems were with our equipment. Regardless, The Space Show apologizes for the phone line distractions. Daniel, a first responder, called in with a brief summary of the recently completed SatCon 2012 Conference in NYC. He had some very interesting things to share with us, especially about national security satellite issues. Check out this conference at www.satconexpo.com. Tim called to talk about our recent program regarding JP Aerospace. Tim said he was working the numbers and does not feel that an airship can make it to orbit. Let us know if you agree with Tim. By the way, others on earlier programs have made it clear that they do not believe JP can get an airship to orbit. In the meantime, John continues to work the problem and best of luck to him and his crew in figuring out how to reach his goal. Doug called in and we talked post election space policy. A few other callers did the same thing including John from Atlanta. I really had no great insights to bring to the table but I suspect that more likely based on how things go with the economy and sequestration, the status quo will prevail on space policy. That said, the SLS program might actually be a target of NASA budget cuts over the next few years but it is way too early to tell. Some listeners seemed to want a partisan discussion on policy and I did my best to avoid it though I did disclose my dislike for our two main political parties. I was also clear that the private sector engaged in capital acquisition was at risk through increased regulation, taxes, inflation, etc. Like everyone, I am hopeful that risk capital will remain strong and space ventures will be able to grow in their share of this unique investor market, but it is a fragile market given our economic situation and the uncertainties ahead of us at this time. John from Winterhaven called about my comments regarding doing something with one’s ideas and concepts over and above just speaking the words or writing a paper. I referred to this throughout our discussion as “breathing life” into one’s concepts/ideas. I am also planning a full Space Show on this subject. Other topics included news stories on the Falcon engine problems and EML2 NASA missions.